Stroud U12's travel to the Forest for Lydney Festival

Foggy Lydney Festival awaited Stroud U12’s first matches of the 2015-2016 season. After an early start and a foggy drive over we were then accosted at the gate with a £5 admin fee. Let’s hope the rugby would be worth the entrance fee. Unfortunately some of the teams must have either got lost in the fog, or balked at paying the £5 so a delayed start ensued while the organisers rejigged the schedule for the teams that didn’t turn up.

Stroud were drawn in a tough group with Matson, Chepstow and Old Pats – Avonmouth having failed to turn up. Perhaps they had forgotten their passports to cross the bridge into Wales…..

For new starters Ed and Joe this was to be their first chance of playing competitive matches in the colours of Stroud rugby. We had a squad of 19 in total. Time to bring out the old nicknames to help with the match reports and come up with some nicknames for the rookies….

Game 1 vs Old Pats

Old Pats (OP) kicked off and Arthur had a good run back. Stoner then took over and ran to the left, barrelling through some tentative OP tackling. The ball was kept alive with Stroud players but they were pushed out-of-play. At the OP lineout Stroud won it and quickly got the ball out to the backs and it went through all the hands out to Finn who made some good distance and was unlucky to knock forward in the tackle.

OP had the scrum and won it but a quick turnover in a ruck from Stroud gave them another attacking opportunity from Dave and Arthur close to OP line. OP held firm and managed to win the ball and kick from their own try line. Alex ran onto the ball but knocked on the catch. Can’t blame the sun for that one, perhaps the hanging fog made the ball slippy…..

In the next phase of play OP did some good attacking but Keyan was upto the job and held them at bay with some good tackles, well supported by Mr T and Orgy. Another turnover gave Dash the chance to attack and he was unlucky to knock on when tackled.

The whistle blew for half time with score remaining 0-0. Stroud were playing really well at the breakdown and winning plenty of good ball but were then making a few handling errors to neutralise the advantage they had worked so hard to get. The coaches rang the changes and 6 subs were made.

2nd half started with a Stroud kickoff. Will placed it perfectly and it bounced out deep in OP half. At the lineout OP threw short but Stroud were alert and bundled them out. Stroud won the resulting lineout. Laurie peeled away with the ball and rumbled up the centre. Stroud won the next ruck but then turned the ball over soon after. Keyan was alert to this and did a rip tackle off the threatening OP player. As he went forward he was well supported by all the forwards and a rolling maul ensued. As we approached the OP try line the urgency intensified and the parents screamed even louder than normal. The maul collapsed and Stoner jumped up celebrating madly and the ref agreed and blew his whistle to indicate the try. Coach Phil would have been proud of that move himself…..

OP kicked deep and the wet ball caused Arthur to knock on the catch. OP had the scrum put in but Stroud with a great forward shove won the ball. Scum half Flash was very alert and snaffled the ball and gave it to Will who kicked long to relieve the pressure. OP dropped the catch, quickly recovered and kicked back to Alex who also knocked on. Back to the OP first knock on 10 yards from their own line.

Stroud won the scrum again and Flash and Will quickly got the ball out to Dave who arced round the right corner to score a diving try. 2-0 to Stroud.

The next phases of play were dominated by OP penalties giving Will the chance to keep the pressure on with great line kicking. At one of the lineouts Jedd did a great tap and Keyan took the ball on. He bundled through 3 or 4 tackles and just as we thought he was going to score he was called back for a handoff. Keyan was upset, but dad Jon was happy to have saved himself a quid. He would need all the money possible because his other lad was scoring plenty of tries for the younger age group.

OP took a quick kick but not as quick as an alert Laurie who charged it down but the ref wanted it taken again as he wasn’t ready for the re-start. OP kicked the penalty long and at the lineout Jedd saved the day by winning the throw in. Will kicked long and OP ran the ball back to the left wing but new recruits Joe and Ed both put in good tackles to slow up the play. A Stroud scrum was awarded and was won again by the forwards who were dominating their phases of the game. The backs attacked again and Archie E was pushed out of bounds. At the lineout Stroud stole it again with Keyan jumping highest. He went on a good run to the right and offloaded at just the right time to Will. He carried on down the right wing and just as we thought he had weaved himself into a try scoring position he was adjudged to have gone out of play.

Full time whistle went and Stroud had won 2-0. Festival tradition had been broken and we had started fast and played well against a good team. Aka England beating Fiji in World Cup opener.

Game 2 vs Alpine ski resort of Matson

Ski's on. We were off to the Alps to take on the team who practice every week on the ski slopes.

This was a local rivalry to match the intensity of England vs Wales at Twickenham. Could Stroud take revenge on their neighbours who had hammered Stroud First XV 54-15 in Saturdays cup game. Matson U12 squad had a reputation for kicking the ball at every opportunity and keeping the ball between the forwards and the accomplished girl scrum half. Here-after known as GSH as she appears a lot in the report, at the expense of her back line that never got the ball. Could the fast flowing rugby from Stroud win the day?

Stroud kicked off and the GSH ran back. She would regret that as Mr T asked her out on a date with a crashing tackle. The ball passed between both teams and Matson resorted to their A game and kicked the ball out. Stroud won their line out and Arthur had a good run down the left flank. A big tackle stopped him short of the line. Matson won the line out and GSH kicked long. The ball bounced around a lot and was knocked on by Stroud. Matson won the scrum and also a penalty. They took a quick penalty but alert tackle by Stoner stopped them short and Matson held on. At the Stroud penalty Will kicked long for touch. Matson won the resulting lineout and turned it into a rolling maul. Stroud ripped the ball out though but were harshly penalised. Matson kicked long for touch and then won another lineout. This time the rolling maul was making good progress to the Stroud try line but good forward play forced them out of bounds.

Orgy was throwing well in the lineout and another great throw was rewarded by a tip to the backs. They were unlucky to knock on. Matson had a scrum on the Stroud line but a perfectly timed shove by Stroud won them the ball against the head and Will managed to kick long to pin Matson back.

The next few attacks petered out and ref blew for halftime with the score delicately poised at 0-0.

2nd half started with a Matson kickoff. Tom H caught the ball deep and ran back. Matson were penalised and Will kicked well for touch. Matson stole the throw though and this time GSH ignored the game plan and passed to her left and the Matson backs attacked well. A high Stroud tackle slowed won play and as players stopped assuming a penalty whistle the ref allowed advantage and Matson recycled the ball and GSH scored the opening try in the right hand corner. 1-0 to Matson.

Stroud kicked off but this time the kick went too long and Matson took the scrum on half way. Stroud were penalised in the scrum and Matson took another quick penalty and attacked. Arthur put in a good tackle but Matson just picked up the loose ball and scored their 2nd try. 2-0 to Matson.

Stroud kicked off down the middle to surprise Matson. Their deep player picked up the ball on his own line but got quickly tackled by Arthur. Arthur quickly jumped up and then pounced on the ball and dived for the line to score an opportunistic try to bring the scores close at 2-1.

Matson kicked off and Liam ran it back. Keyan then took the ball on. An alert Eddie then took over ball carrying duties and when he was tackled the ball popped out forward but didn’t touch the ground and the ref harshly awarded it as a knockon – even the Stroud and Matson coaches agreed play should have continued.

Matson won the scrum and GSH went right. Eddie tackled her. Matson attacked again but were penalised for handoff while it was Arthurs turn to put in the big tackle and he was rewarded with a whack on the shoulder. Will kicked the penalty long. Orgys line out throw found Jedd who fed Tom H. He was hurt in the resulting ruck and had to go off for a breather. Matson attacked and Dave did the denying tackle. Matson were penalised and ref called ‘last play’

Will H kicked long to try and pin Matson back deep but he was unlucky and the ball bounced close to the line and then came back into play were an alert Matson player ran it out of play. Ref blew the final whistle and Stroud had lost a close game 2-1. Remind you of England getting robbed by Wales in the dying minutes?

Game 3 vs Chepstow

This was it. Last chance saloon. Stroud had to beat Chepstow to stay in the competition, just like England had to give the Aussies a hiding to stay in the World Cup.

Will kicked off for Stroud. Chepstow ran the ball back a few times with good attacking lines. Mr T put in a rip tackle to claim the ball for Stroud. Archie E attacked with Joe in support. A good Chepstow tackle stopped that attack and forced a turnover. Will H was equally alert and knocked the ball out in the tackle. Dave picked up the ball and attacked. At the next break down Chepstow were penalised. Stroud won the ball and Will put in a good tactical kick. Chepstow caught it well and had a dodging run back. Only as far as Stoner though who ignored the weaving hips and just dumped him on his backside!

Chepstow were proving to be formidable opposition though and had a back line the equal of Strouds. Another phase of attacking play by Chepstow got them to the Stroud try line and just as we thought they were going to score they were forced out of play on the try line by last ditch defensive effort from Finn.

At the lineout Orgy went long with another laser throw. This time Keyan was unlucky with the tip and the Chepstow scrumhalf picked up the loose ball and scored an easy try. 1-0 to Chepstow.

Stroud kicked off and both teams took in it turns to attack each other and equally defend strongly. Arthur and Mr T both put in strong tackles. Flash was doing a good job around the rucks with stealing the ball. Chepstow did another great attacking move and got close to the Stroud line. Just as we thought we had held them up the Chepstow forwards joined the sprawl of bodies and pushed over for a 2nd try. Arthur was injured (again) in the melee and Alex came on to replace him in the centre.

Stroud kicked off and again a game of stalemate broke out. Penalties were traded. Stoner had a good attacking run but this attack was slowed down and ref blew for half time. 2-0 to Chepstow.

2nd half started with another raft of substitutions. Arthur declared himself fit to continue so came on for Dave. Chepstow kicked off short and Dash knocked on. Chepstow won the scrum and ran right but knocked on when Callum tackled. Will’s long kick stayed in and a fast approaching Dash caused Chepstow to knock on. An alert Arthur then picked up the ball and forged forward until he was tackled hard. Prone on the floor injured again this time he was taken off for good and Dave came back on.

Stroud had a scrum that came under intense Chepstow pressure. It was reset and Stroud did well to win it 2nd time and Tom H got the ball quickly to the backs who this time went through all the hands to the left. This time Dash was tackled. Chepstow were awarded a scrum but again the Stroud front line won the battle and stole a scrum. The ball went right this time and Joe and Alex combined well to make some good gains. Chepstow were always in the right place defensively though and snaffled out a lot of the attacks.

In the next passage of play Chepstow got deep into the Stroud half. Dave kicked from his line to relieve the pressure. Chepstow caught the ball at pace and ran it straight back down the left wing. Stoner tackled well and forced the player out of play. Stroud won the lineout and this time it was Alex’s turn to kick from deep in their own half. Again the safe hands of Chepstow ran the ball back and Ed put in a top tackle. Keyan picked up the loose ball and went on his own long run, but unfortunately he got penalised for a hand off. Final whistle went and Stroud had lost 2-0. Done an England and lost a must win game. Matson and Chepstow went through to the semi-finals.

As we were packing up we were offered the chance to play Drybrook in a friendly. Any chance to put right the wrongs of 2 close loses we thought so we accepted the challenge….

Game 4 vs Drybrook

Just like the upcoming England vs Uruguay would this be a non-event or would it be the chance to run up a score and go home on our hours journey with a feel good factor?

Drybrook kicked off and Archie E caught the ball cleanly and attacked. Drybrook stole the ball though and kicked for the Stroud line. Alex took the ball cleanly though and ran to the left, spying a rapid Dash he timed his pass to perfection and Dash took off like a fighter jet and was last seen scoring a try in the left hand corner before he went through the sound barrier. 1-0 to Stroud.

Drybrook kicked short and recovered their own kick. They were forced out of play though. Stroud won the lineout with a clean Mr T catch. The ball came to Will and he did a typical Stroud #10 move (if you watch the first 15 on Saturdays) and did a long pass that missed out 3 players and went straight to the winger Archie E who attacked down the right. He was stopped close to touch but Alex managed to keep the ball alive and it came back via Dave and out to Dash on the other wing. He was held up though.

Drybrook had a scrum on halfway that took a few times to get right due to it collapsing. Drybrook won it eventually but good Stroud tackling from Joe and Finn stopped the attacks. Dash picked up a loose ball and attacked but himself was forced out. Drybrook lost the lineout and Dave and Will miscommunicated when a good attack seemed imminent. Drybrook won the scrum and went right. They knocked on in the tackle from Liam and Dash picked up the ball and ran down the left again. Same result – no one got close and he crossed the try line to make it 2-0. So impressed was the ref with this passage of play he didn’t even bother to chase after it. He stayed on half way line and called the try, even when Dash came under pressure from a heroic last ditch Drybrook tackle.

Drybrook kicked short and Keyan ran it back. The ball came out through the backs to the left. Mr T then took it back to the right on a marauding run. At the perfect time Dave took on the attack on straight line through the middle. He was stopped short though but not to be denied the Stroud backs attacked to the left and perfect timing left Finn wide open to score. 3-0 to Stroud at the half.

Stroud kicked off the 2nd half with a short but high kick. Liam, attentive as ever from the Friday night practice, recognised this as a chance and recovered the ball. He moved it forwarded and then Dave took it on. He was held up close to the line. At the resultant scrum Stroud won it and Flash went blindside to try and score. He was stopped but the ball came back out to the left and Dash this time was held up on the line. Drybrook won the scrum but Flash spoiled the pass and Will saw his chance and picked up the ball and dived over the line to give Stroud a 4-0 lead.

Drybrook kicked off again and Finn caught cleanly and ran it back. The ball was turned over and Drybrook were pushed out of play. Stroud won the lineout again. Keyan was desperate to score a try and attacked again. This time he was hauled down but Laurie was there to keep up the momentum. As he was slowed up the ball came out to Dash. He did his best Jonny May impression and ran left, then cut back to the right and ran sideways the width of the pitch and then turned it up the wing to score his 3rd try of the game. 5-0 to Stroud.

Drybrook kicked off. They won a scrum and got quick ball to their backs. Dave did a rip tackle though and ran the ball down the left wing. Drybrook didn’t give up and chased him down with a perfect tackle. As the forwards arrived a few rucks developed with Callum and Jedd putting it all on the line to win good ball for Stroud. Drybrook hadn’t let their heads drop though and kept tackling and attacking. Liam was playing really well and ripped the ball loose. The ball went through the backs and Dave came onto it straight and scored up the middle. He went off injured with the score 6-0.

Drybrook kicked off and Finn again caught it and ran back to the left. Callum secured good ball and Will was looking for a long pass. Orgy in his only black mark of the day got himself in the way in the 10 hole and made Will hesitate which caused the ball to sail out of play. Drybrook won the lineout and wanted to score a consolation try. They kept the ball alive, but after a few phases it came loose and Flash saw his chance and scooped it up and scampered down the left wing, just swerving at the right time to make Drybrook miss the last tackle. He touched down to make it 7-0 to Stroud.

Full time whistle went and Stroud had finished in style. They had scored the biggest score of the day. Even Cinderford and Berry Hill only scored 5 and 3 tries against Drybrook.

Matson won the final 3-1 vs Chepstow and this goes to show how close we were when we only lost to them 2-1 with them hanging on at the end.

Team debrief happened and Forwards man of the festival was Orgy and backs man of the festival went to Arthur.

So the final outcome was:

Stroud 2-0 Old Pats (England vs Fiji)
Stroud 1-2 Matson (England vs Wales)
Stroud 0-2 Chepstow (England vs Australia)
Stroud 7-0 Drybrook (England vs Uruguay)

Won 2 and lost 2. 10 tries scored and 4 conceeded. A few of the teams came across and said how attractive our play was which was nice to hear and a credit to the coaching staff he make the boys play the game in the correct manner and not resorted to kick and run like some teams we saw were doing.

So now the post tournament debrief will start. How did we lose? Like Englands World Cup team we blamed our flanker for costing us the games. Unlike England we haven’t got a flanker at this age group so it wasn’t really a fair comparison but to be fair Chris Robshaw could join our team and struggle to get a game and likewise some of our kids could play for England next Sat vs Uruguay and do better than the England players on Sat night vs Australia !

PS Happy Birthday to Sam. She's not claiming 21 anymore. She is being realistic and went for 28..... Her son definitely rewarded her with his man of the festival performance.